Bookbinder



3! 29, 1951 M. H. NOVEMBER 2,555,290

BOOKBINDER Filed July 28, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 A T w F F I /5 6 1 6 5 7 I5 JQF/QF/K IN VEN TOR.

WITNESS flTTORNEY y 29, 1951 M. H. NOVEMBER 2,555,290

BOOKBINDER Filed July 28, 1949 I5 Sheets-Sheet 2 5 5 INVIENTOR.

7 5 6 7 M O/Vfl/I OVEMBEI? M. H. NOVEMBER May 29, 1951 BOOKBINDER s Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed July 28, 1949 INVENTOR. Ma raA/fif/l w amm gym Patented May 29, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OF F'I'CEI Application July 28, 1949, Serial'No. 107,267

This. invention relates to improvements in binders for books, pamphlets, notebooks and the like, and more particularly to the manufacture ofian improvedbinder composed of; a wire' that has been formed into a plurality of rings which extend through perforations along. the binding edges of'the sheets and covers in a book to hold the latter intheir proper relation.

An. object of. the invention is to. provide a book of the indicated. type which is of simple, inexpensive. construction and which may be manufactured readily in large quantities.

A further object of'the invention is to provide aloookofv the indicated type, which maybe assembled readily. and yet whose component parts cannotbeinadvertenfly separated during usage.

Other objects, as well as the advantages and novel. features. of the. invention, will become. apparent after a. perusal of the following descriptionwhenread inconnection with the accompanyingdrawingsin which Fig.. 1 is aplan .view of= a-.wire. illustrating steps performed thereon in forming the. binding element of this invention; Fig.2.isanend View of the right-hand, partly completed, ring member shown in Fig. 1; Eig. 3 is. a perspectiveview of. the. partly completed; bindingelement prior to its. insertion into a book; Figs. 4. and. 5 are side, sectional views showing the manner in whichv the. binding. elementisrmountedonthe binding edge of a. book priorto its completion; Fig. 6. is. a verticalsectionalviewof a.book, a partly-formed binder therefor andparts of. mechanism which may be utilized to complete theformation of the binder on..the. book; Fig. 7 isa top. plan. view of. some of the parts shown inFig. .6; Fig. 8 .is .a view similar toFig. 6, showing thepositions assumed bythemachine parts when the binder loops are completely. bent; Fig. 9..is.a View similar to Figs. 6..and.8, showing. the position assumed by the binderloopswhen thebinder. loop forming tools have been. withdrawn; Fig. 10 is. a perspective viewof a portion of. a book bound in. accordance with theinvention; Fig. 11 is. a side view of a portion of..a.book, so hound,,,with the top cover. moved .to. a positionunderlying the bottomcover thereof ;v Fig. 12 is a. longitudinal, elevational view 0f..a...portion of a completed. binder illustrating, the manner in which it maintains the sheets andcovers of. the book together; Fig. 13 is. a. verticaL. sectional side View of the. upper portion of a book illustrating another form of the invention;..Figs. 14, 15 and, 16Iare vertical sectional'jviews showing, another embodimentof the ,invention;..Figs. 14' and. 15 illustrating the 6 Claims. (Cl; 28125) 2. shift of the binding element. relative. to the cover and how it functions, to maintain the bound condition of'th'e book, and Fig. 16' showing: the arrangementof the parts when the-book is in open condition.

Asisshown in Figs. 10 and 11 of thedrawings, the binder-is composed of a seriesv of ring elements I which extend through perforations. 2

provided in spaced: relation along the: binding 7 of spaced loops H connected 'bytheintermedi ate= aligned sections? of wire. The sections 5 are then deformed to provide intermediate their ends, the projections orlocking prongs G whioh are substantially v shaped and which extend from the sections din a directionopposite to that of the loops M. Theloops II are then closed to form lateral, parallelly spaced fingers l2, each composed of-' the two portions-of wire: which constituted thesides-of-the loop and as-aresu1t -of the closing action,- such portions' are in contact with-each other throughout their lengths The fingers 12 are then each progressively bent in the manner indicated at the right-hand end of Fig; 1 to=the= form =shown inFig. 2 ofthedrawings. At=the-end-of these operations, the formed portion ofwire I9 will have the configuration shown' inFi'g. 3-of the drawings and will be'ready to be made use -of"-inbinding .a'pluralityof sheets together; the manufacturer to binders so that thelatter The binder in this form is sold by can do-thei'r own-binding-of the book's made by them:

As is shown more-clearly'in Fig. 2'of the-drawings; the partlyformed and open, substantially 'C-'shape'd.rin'g elements 4 constructedfrom the fingers l2, each include a. tip portion 7 which is' .straight'and which is connected to and'projects from the outer end of an intermediate curvediportion I3; Portion l3 has the same radius throughout its length and extends through an .arc of approximately 135 degrees. Connectedto. the inner end 0t portion I3 is a central straight. portion id;.whose length for anygiven size ofl binder is. dependent upon..th.e satisfaction: of. three vimportantfactor-s, namely-, ease of portions I of such ring elements. .of such construction, the binder may be easily entry of the ring members of the binder into the apertures of the book, ease of mounting such ring members on the mandrels of the forming machine to complete the formation of such rings, and ease of completing the formation of such rings by a simple wiping movement of the forming members. In determining the length of portion I4 to satisfy these requirements, such length should be a maximum to accomplish ease of entry into the book and mounting upon the mandrels, and should be a minimum to accomplish the ready completion of the final form of the ring members, as will hereinafter become more clear. Portion I4 is connected at its other end to a curved portion I5 which extends through an arc of approximately 150 degrees and which has the same radius throughout its length. The radius of curved portion I5 is slightly greater than the radius of curved portion I3 for a purpose which shall hereinafter become more clear. It will be noted from Fig. 2, that as a result of such construction of the ring elements I, the

straight top portions "I thereof are substantially tangential with respect to the curved portions I3 thereof, and the locking prongs 6 of the binder are substantially located in a straight plane which is substantially tangential to the curved As a result mounted on the binding edge of a book even though the width of the space between the tips I of the ring elements I and the outer ends or tips of the locking prongs 6 may be equal to or slightly less than the thickness of the book on which such binder is to be mounted.

One method of mounting the binding element on a book is illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5 of the drawings. As is shown in Fig. 4, prior to the insertion of the binder, the pages 3 and covers 4 of the book are arranged in book fashion with the spaced perforations 2 along the binding edges thereof aligned in straight vertical lines. The tips I of the ring elements I of the binder are then inserted into the bottom ends of the sets of aligned perforations while holding the binder a in the manner indicated in Fig. 4 of the drawings. Due to the straight tip portions 7, the ring elements I will readily pass upwardly through the sets of apertures without interfering with the walls of the latter. I of the binder emerge from the apertures in the top cover of the book, the ring elements I are rotated to bring the connecting sections 5 I of the binder into contact with the lower cover of the book. With the parts so arranged in the manner shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings, the

ring members are processed to bring them to the completed form shown in Figs. 10 and 11 of the drawings.

Suitable mechanism for completing the final form of the ring members I of the binder is illustrated in Figs. 6 through 9 of the drawings. Such mechanism preferably comprises a base having mounted thereon, a longitudinally extending block 2I which supports a plurality of forwardly projecting, spaced plates 22. The plates 22 are parallelly arranged on the block 2| and at their outer ends, have a thickness equal approximately to one-half the length of the binder sections 5 (note Fig. 7). Provided on the outer ends of the plates 22 and extending transversely to one side wall thereof, are a series of forming mandrels 23. As can be seen from Figs. 6 and '7, the mandrels 23 are located approximately centrally of the front ends of the plates 22 and As the tips extend in aligned relation across the mechanism. Each mandrel 23 is semi-cylindrical in shape, having a fiat front face which is flush with the forward face of its associated plate 22, and a curved rear or working face which extends through degrees and has a radius slightly less than the radius of the ring member to be finished thereon. Positioned adjacently in front of the plates 22 is a work-holding table 24 which is vertically adjustable with respect to the fixed mandrels 23 by means of an eccentric cam member 25. Located over the rear edge portion of the table 24 is a spring loaded work-holding pad 26 arranged for reciprocating movement in a substantially vertical direction. Adjacently to the rear of the holding pad 26 is a punch holder ram 21 arranged for movement in a substantially vertical direction and provided with a plurality of spaced punches 28 whose lower working ends are arranged to pass closely in rear of the mandrels 23 on the downward stroke of the ram.

It will be understood that in the operation of the foregoing mechanism, a book with the binder positioned thereon in the manner shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings, is first placed on the table 24 so that its bindingedge abuts against the forward faces or ends of the plates 22 and the flat front faces of the mandrels 23, and with the ring members I of the binder thereof overlying the mandrels 23 in the manner illustrated in Figs. 6 and '7 of the drawings. The spring loaded pad 26 and ram 21 are then operated to move down simultaneously. The pad 26 being in advance of the punches 28, comes into engagement with the binding edge of the book before the punches 28 engage the ring members I and firmly clamps the book on the table. As the holder of pad 26 and the ram 21 continue their downward movements, the pad 26 will engage the book with increased pressure due to the increased tension placed on its associated spring and the punches 28 will engage the ring members I and wipe them around their associated mandrels in the manner shown in Fig. 8 of the drawings. As a result of this wiping action the straight central portions I I of the ring members will be bent to the curvature of the working surface of the mandrel to give the ring members of the binder their finished circular shape. When the ram has completed its downward forming movement, the ring members I are overbent as shown in Fig. 8 to compensate for spring back. The ring members I assume their finished shape when the forming punches 28 have been withdrawn on the return stroke of the ram 21 (note Fig. 9). It will be noted from Figs. 9 through 12 of the drawings, that in the finished shape of the ring members I, the tip I of each of such members will have withdrawn somewhat from the binder backbone composed of the sections 5 thereof in contrast to their overlapped relation, as is shown in Fig, 8.

It will be understood from the foregoing, that in the formation of the ring members I of binders on books of varying thicknesses, an adjustment of the table is required to compensate for working position of the parts and to control the degree of closure of such ring members. Normally, the mandrels 23 are of a diameter designed to give the straight portions I 4 of the ring members I a radius of curvature corresponding to the radius of curvature of the portions I5 of such members. The length of a straight portion I4 is such that on a mandrel designed to accomplish this purpose, it will cor- 5" respond to an are on, the mandrel of less than 90 degrees. Thus, if the table 24 is adjusted for the thickness of a book to be bound so that the beginning of a ring member portion M overlies the upper edge of the forming surface of the mandrel, as is indicated in Fig. 6 of the drawings, such portion M will be formed on the upper half of the working surface of the mandrel and above the point of tangency of the associated punch 28 with such ring member and the mandrel when such punch is in an advanced position (compare Figs. 6 and 8). As the table is raised, the portion is of the ring member will be formed on the mandrel further and further away from the top edge of the working surface of such mandrel so that its outer, right-hand end as viewed in Figs. 6 and 8 of the drawings, will approach closer and closer to the point oftangency between the ram punch 28 and the mandrel. If the table is adjusted too high so that such outer end of portion M of the ring member falls at some point beyond the arc point of tangency between the ram punch 28 and the mandrel, then an increment of length of such portion it adjacent to the curved portion [3 of such ring member will remain straight and the loop will have a greater opening between the tip l thereof and the straight backbone section 5 of the binder or at the point designated 35 in Fig. 12 of the drawings. On the other hand, itwill be understood that when the table is low so that an increment length of portion it projects forwardly beyond the hat vertical front face of the mandrel 23, then there will be an unformed length of such portion M adjacent to the curved portion 15 of the ring member l and this will also increase the opening at the point designated 30 in Fig. 12. A complete closure of such opening 30 or even an overlap of the tip 7 of the ring member 1 with respect to the backbone of the binder is possible if the mandrel 23 is too small and portion it is formed more nearly to the radius of curved portion l3 of the ring member l than to the radius of curved portion 15 thereof. Also the final formed radius of portion is of the ring member l is dependent to the degree of wiping pressure between the punch and the mandrel. Thus, the degree of closure of the ring members i can be accurately controlled by either varying the position of the table 24 relative to the mandrel 23, or varying the diameter of the mandrel 23, or varying the forming pressure of the punches 28 on such ring members, It will be understood that while I have illustrated the movement of the forming punches as being at a slight incline to the vertical, such movement can take place along a truly vertical line or at another angle best suited to the practical considerations in- .volved in the formation of a particular binder.

I have found that when the forming punches are arranged at an incline to the vertical so that their paths of movement are substantially tangential to points or a horizontal line on the forming mandrel below a horizontal plane passed through the longitudinal axis of such mandrel, the adjustment of the table becomes less critical in the formation of the ring members.

It will be seen from the foregoing discussion that the basic shape of the ring members I is readily accomplished with a single tool of very simple design requiring only a wiping action in one direction. Since the radius of curvature of the portions it of the ring members I is less than iha ad uso u a r of porti ns lfithereof.

6 he straight po tions id for a given. e th of marine members ca be ma e u fici nt y n to permit ease of installing thebook on the table 24-.and the ring members I on the mandrels 23. It will be noted from Fig. 6 of the drawings, that when the book is so mounted on the forming mechanism, the ring mmebers are firmly secured against substantial movement during the wiping sets of. apertures. By reason of the fact that the,

tip portions 7 of the ring members I are straight, such tips during the completion of ring members i, will come into overlapping jamming relation with the backbone of the binder (note Fig. 8), and, thereby overcome the ofiset inherent in thebinder when closed, due to the dimensional differences between the curved portions 13 and I5 of such ring members and which would otherwise occur if such tip portions were not straight. Thus, thering members I will assume a substantially circular form in their finished state. This form however, willnot be truly circular in View of the varying configuration of the several portions, of the ring members deliberately made, as has been previously pointed out, to provide ease of assembly of the binder on the book to be bound and, also simplicity and ease of installation and formation in the closing mechanism.

As hasbeen seen more clearly from Figs. 10, l1 and. 12, in the finished hinder, the tips i of thering members i will be spaced from the roots of such, members so that such ring members do not extend through a complete circle of 360 degrees. The locking prongs 6 on the backbone sections 5 of the binder however, project outwardly from such sections a distance greater than the width of the spaces 3%) between the tips I of the ring members i and the sections 5. Thus, a sheet in a book willbe prevented by the prongs iifrorn passing between the openings 30 of the binder as is indicated more clearly in Fig. 12 of the drawings. It will also be readily apparent from Fig. 12, that the only manner in which such a sheet can be removed from the book without distorting the binder, would be to give the bound edge of the sheet a wavy form so that it can be passed simultaneously through the openings QilJand underthe prongs 6. This, of course could never inadvertently occur. Accordingly, the locking prongs 5 positively prevent any inadvertent removal of the sheets or covers of a book during usage of the latter. Became the prongs ii are disposed at a tangent to the plane of curvature of the ring members, such prongs, when a book such as a stenograhpers notebook is completel folded on itself, will maintain the two cove-rs thereof in spaced relation away from the tips 7 of the ring members i and prevent any possible disengagement of either the covers or pages of such book when the latter is so used. Instead of mounting the binder on a book of this type in the manner shown in Figs. 10 and 11, the lockingprongs E and tips 1 thereof, may be positioned intermediate the pages 3 of the book and one of the covers d thereof, as is shown in Fig. 13 of the drawings. The binder will thus beconcealed from view when the book is closed.

In this form of the invention, the binder may be so arranged on the book that the locking prongs 6 will engage with the first or last page of the book to prevent removal of the pages over the tips 1 of the ring members I, while the sections 5 of the binder will engage with the adjacent cover when the book is closed as is shown in Fig. 13, or the binder may be inserted in the book so that the sections 5 are adjacent to the first or last pages of the book and the locking prongs 6 are in engagement with an adjacent cover as is shown in Fig. 14 of the drawings to prevent possible removal of such cover from the book through the openings 30.

Figs. 14, 15 and 16 show the binder mounted in a book provided with a backing so that the binder is wholly concealed except for those portions of the ring members I which project through two rows of apertures 3!, 32, provided in the backing 33 of the book. While in the illustrated form of this construction the prongs 6 are shown in engagement with one of the covers, it will be understood that the binder may be arranged on such a book in the manner indicated in Fig. 13. Figs. 14 and 15 illustrate how the backbone of the binder may be shifted with respect to the pages and backbone of the book in this construction and how the prongs 6 will still restrain the tips 1 of the ring members I from pulling out of the holes 32 in the cover backing 33. Fig. 16 illustrates how the several parts of the binder function when a book of this type is in opened position. It will be noted that the turned pages through their engagement with the wire sections 5 will cause the binder to shift to bring the prongs 6 into engagement with the cover. The cover and the first page therefore will be maintained by the sections 5 and prongs 6 of the binder in spaced relation, with the tips I of the binder and their associated openings 30 located there- 'between and prevented by such sections 5 and prongs 6 from coming into releasing relation with such parts of the book.

While I have illustrated in the drawings and J hereinabove described the preferred form of my invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A book comprising sheets having perforations along an edge thereof and a sheet binder including a plurality of spaced ring members passed through the perforations in said sheets and longitudinally extending meansconnecting said ring members together, said ring members extending transversely from said longitudinally extending means and being bent to a curvature less than 360 degrees so that the free end portions thereof are transversely offset from and in spaced relation to said longitudinally extending means, and prongs formed on said longitudinally extending means intermediate said ring members and in spaced relation to the points of connection of said longitudinally extending means and said ring members, said prongs projecting from said longitudinally extending means in a direction opposite to that -of said ring members and overlapping the free end portions of said ring members to prevent inadvertent removal of the sheets over the free 7 end portions of said ring members.

2. A book comprising sheets having perforations along an edge thereof and a sheet binder extending means and said ring members, said including a plurality of spaced ring members passed through the perforations in said sheets and longitudinally extending means connecting said ring members together, said ring members extending transversely from said longitudinally extending means and being bent to a curvature less than 369 degrees so that the end portions thereof are transversely offset from and in spaced relation to said longitudinally extending means, the bodies of said ring members from their points of connection to said longitudinally extending means to the free end portions being of substantially circular form and said free end portions thereof being straight, and stop members formed on said longitudinally extending means intermediate said ring members and in spaced relation to the points of connection of said longitudinally extending means and said ring members, said stop members projecting from said longitudinally extending means in opposed relation to the free end portions of said ring members and substantially lying in a plane that is substantially tangential to the plane of curvature of the connected ends of said ring members, the outer ends of said stop members being spaced from said longitudinally extending means a distance greater than the free end portions of said ring members to prevent inadvertent removal of the sheets of the book over the free end portions of said ring members.

3. A partly completed binder for a plurality of sheets having perforations along an edge thereof composed of a plurality of C-shaped rin members disposed in spaced side by side relation and connected together by substantially straight longitudinally extending means, the ring members each including a curved portion connected to said longitudinally extending means, a straight portion connected at one end to said curved portion, a second curved portion connected to the other end of said straight portion and having a radius of curvature less than that of said first mentioned curved por tion, and a straight free end portion connected to said second curved portion, said longitudinally extending means being provided intermediate said ring members and in spaced relation to the points of connection of said longitudinally extending means and said ring members with offset portions forming prongs projecting therefrom in opposed relation to said rin members and being contained in a straight plane substantially tangential to the plane of curvature of the first mentioned curved portions of said ring members.

7 4. A book comprising sheets having perforations along an edge thereof and a sheet binder including at least two spaced apart ring members passed through perforations in said sheets and a longitudinally extending means connecting said ring members together, said ring members extending transversely from said longitudinally extending means and being bent to a curvature less than 360 so that the free end portions thereof are transversely offset from and in spaced relation to said longitudinally extending means, and a stop member formed on said longitudinally extending means intermediate said ring members and in spaced relation to the points of connection of said longitudinally stop member projecting from said longitudinally extending means in a direction opposite to that 'of said ring members and for a distance greater than the space between the free end portions of said ring members and said longitudinally extending means so as to be in overlapping relation with the free ends of said ring members and thereby to prevent inadvertent removal of the sheets over the free end portions of said ring members.

5. A book comprising sheets having perforations along an edge thereof and a sheet binder composed of a wire bent to form at least two spaced apart rings having their axes in alignment and a longitudinally extending portion connectin such rings, the rings being passed through perforations in said sheets and being bent to a curvature less than 360 so that the free end portions thereof are transversely ofiset from and in spaced relation to said longitudinally extending portion, and said longitudinally extending portion including substantially straight longitudinally extendin end parts connected to said rings and a distorted, offset part between said end parts and projecting from such end parts of said longitudinally extending portion in a direction opposite to that of said rings for a distance greater than the space between the free end portions of said rings and such end parts of said longitudinally extending portion so as to be in overlapping relation with the free ends of said rings and thereby to prevent inadvertant removal of the sheets over the free end portions of said rings.

6. A partially completed binder for a plurality of sheets having perforations along an edge thereof composed of at least two C-sha'ped ring members disposed in spaced side-by-side relation and connected together by substantially straight longitudinally extending means, said ring members each including a curved inner portion connected to said longitudinally extending means, an intermediate straight portion connected at one end to said curved inner portion and an outer curved portion connected to the other end of said straight portion, said 1ongitudinally extending means being provided intermediate said ring members and in spaced relation to the points of connection of said longitudinally extending means and said ring members with an offset portion forming a stop member and projecting from such means in opposed relation to said ring members so that the outer free end of said stop member and the free end portions of said ring members define the width of the opening in such binder, and the intermediate straight portions of said ring members being adapted to be bent to give said ring members a curvature of less than 360 degrees and such as to bring said stop member and the free end portions of said ring members into over lapping relation and thereby to close the opening in the binder.

MILTON H. NOVEMBER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,129,605 Catini Sept. 6, 1938 2,144,581 Trussell Jan. 17, 1939 2,185,004 Trussell Dec. 26, 1939 2,190,722 Martin Feb. 20, 1940 2,200,146 Block May '7, 1940 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 466,752 Great Britain May 31, 194'? 

